Yarn conditioning process



Patented Apr. 23, 1940 UNITED STATES PATE YARN comrnohnve rnocass' Joseph B. Dickey, Rochester, N. Y., assignor to Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey No Drawing. Application December 21, 1938,

' Serial No. 247,102 I I This invention relates to the conditioning of textile yarns and more particularly to the conditioning of filaments and. yarns composed of organic derivatives of cellulose such as cellulose acetate, cellulose propionate, cellulose acetate propionate, and cellulose acetate butyrate, to render them more amenable to textile operations such as knitting and the like.

As is well known in the manufacture of yarns, particularly those composed of or containing cel-, lulose organic derivatives, it is necessary to treat the yarn in order to reduce the tendency toward breakage of the individual filaments or fibers when they are subjected to various mechanical strains, and to lubricate. the yarn in order to facilitate handling in such operations as spinning, twisting, winding and reeling. It is also necessary to treat yarn to adapt it for use as warp or filling or for the manufacture of various types of knitted fabrics. In knitting, it is particularly important that the yarn be soft and pliable in order that it may conform readily to the contour of the needles and thus produce a closely knit fabric free from such defects as stitch distortion, pin holes? laddering, and the like.

Heretofore it has been proposed to employ softening agents such as polyhydric alcohols and similar agents as ingredients of yarn conditioning or lubricating formulas, generally in connection with mineral, animal or vegetable oils. It has been found, however,. that most of the known softening agents and the various formulas containing them have certain drawbacks, one of the most serious of which is high vapor pressure, and in some cases too drastic a solvent action on the yarn. Many of such agents possess slight or insufficient solvent power for the lubricants with which they are used, and it is accordingly necessary to employ blending agents or emulsifying agents in order to obtain operable ditioning agents which augment or assist the. lubricating action of various lubricants when applied to such yarns. A still further object is to provide yarn softening and lubricating formulas which can be readily removed from the yarns by the usual scour baths. A still further object is to provide an improved method for the conditioning of yarns, particularly those composed of 011 containing organic derivatives of cellulose such as cellulose acetate, whereby the yarn is rendered soft and pliable and capable of employment in a variety of textile operations where complicated designs or stitches are em-, ployed. Another object is to provide an improved type of yarn which is especially amenable to textile operations including circular knitting, weaving, spinning, the manufacture of cut staple fibers, and the like. Other objects will appear hereinafter. V

These objects are accomplished by the fol-" lowing invention which, in its broader aspects, comprisesthe discovery that organic amine and mixed organic amine and metallic salts of organic acids and organic acid amides having the general formulas:

N-C c=c)..- coon),, (0119400011),

(I I and \r-c)- cm .-(coon),'

A (I Z where m is 1, 2, etc: 11 is 1 or more; 2 is 1 or more; a and a are substituents selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, substituted, and unsubstituted alkyl, cycloalkyl, alkylene, aryl and heterocyclic groups, and the system (CHuln where n is 0, 1 or more and may besubs'tithted with any substituen't other than hydroxy-may be used as yarn conditioning agents and particularly as softening'agents, with or without the addition of animal, mineral, or vegetable oils, in-the treatment of yarns composed of or con-, taining organic derivatives of-cellulose. -I have found that these compounds when employed as described in the detailed examples set forth below have a slight solvent and/or softening action on cellulose organic derivative yarns which renders such yarns soft'and pliable without at the same. time having too drastic an action thereon, p

In order to prepare the salts indicated above, I may employ any suitable inorganic hydroxide and any primary,'secondary, tertiary or quaterwhich enable them to dissolve mineral oils and blownand unblown; drying and semi-drying;

vegetable and animal oils and accordingly they may be, and preferably are, employed as ingredients of yarn conditioning or lubricating formulas in conjunction with agents which function wholly or partially as lubricants.

I have also found that the above mentioned compounds are particularly valuable as antistatic agents when applied to filaments, threads, fabrics, etc., composed of or containing organic derivatives of cellulose, such as cellulose acetate, cellulose propionate, cellulose acetate butyrate, and the like, and to textile materials in general. In the following examples and description I have set forth several of the preferred embodiments of my invention but they are included merely for purposes of illustration and not .as

alimitation thereof. My invention will be more readily understood by reference to the following examples in which typical applications of the invention are set forth.

Example 1 Succinic acid dioleylamine salt is applied to textile materials (silk, cotton, wool, viscose, cellulose acetate) by means of a bath, wick, roller, spray, etc., to facilitate their knitting, weaving, spinning and 'the like. Yarns lubricated with the above types of lubricant are of special value in the preparation of cut staple fibers. fibers-may be oiled before or after cutting.

Example 2 A conditioning liquid is'made up as follows:

Parts 5, p'-tetrahydrofurfuryloxyethyl ether 90 Water 5 Oxalic acid difurfurylamine salt 5 andapplied to textile materials such as silk, wool, cellulose acetate, etc. as described in Example 1.

If the yarn is intended primarily for knitting,

the amount of conditioning liquid applied may vary from 425% by weight of the yarn and if for weaving, between 1-5% by weight.

Cellulose acetate filaments treated as described above are quite soft and pliable and give improved results in various textile operations such as weaving, knitting, etc., and'especially in the production of cut staple fibers.

Other examples of yarn conditioning compositions which may be applied to various types of yarns, particularly those composed of or containing cellulose, acetate, cellulose acetate propionate, cellulose acetate butyrate, and similar cellulose organic acid esters in accordance with my invention and which render such yarns soft.

and pliable and especially well adapted for various textile operations, particularly knitting, are as follows:

Example 3 v I Parts N kos-011F000]; 1 mmonium-potasium malonate.) Blown olive oil 40, Glycerol acetone e 59 These nary organic base in accordance with known Example 4 omomnnooowmh-co-onnm-on, 5

(Diethylamino-metliylamino succinate.)

Water 5 Olive oil Tetrahydroiuriuryl lactate 30 Example 5 C4H7NH:;HQ.C0(CHz)3-CONH1 2-5 (Glutaric acid amide (mono) butylamine salt.)

" Neats-ioot oil 98-95 Example 6' HC--CH CH-(TH H -CHg-NH-C-(CHfiQ-CO.QH.NH:CHz-g 43H" 2-10 0 I O 0 Buccinlc acid iuriurylamlde (mono) iuriuryl amine salt.) Blo wn neat's-ioot oil 98-90 Example 7 (cls) xoe-c=c-o-Ndiruirur i -s t it l t (Maleic diiuriurylamide (mono) potassium salt.) Blown neats-foot oi 40 Neat's-ioot nil 59-55 Example 8 l (m )H H I ns (CH:):NHOC|--C=C-(|3N\- 1-5 6 C2HA. (Fumarlc morpholine amide (mono) trimethyl amine salt).

Sperm nil 99-95 Example 9 Butylamine.H0CC=C-N.Piperidine 1-5 0 H on; (a-Methylmaleic piperidine amide (mono) butylamine salt.)

Blown sperm oil 99-95 Example 10 I I CHr-CH: 0 CH2- H\ CH: HOG-CHz-CH-CHa-E-ORH-N 0 NH, 0 =0 cH,\om-oi C 1 CH: .NH| 3 Hz Ha a O VH7 H3 Tricarbylic acid ammonium, cyclohexylamine, ditetrahydrofurfurylamine salt 1-10 Blown sperm oil 80 Di-p-methoxyethyl succinate 19-10 Example 11 CHz-CH: H:C-CCH:(|JOH.(CH3)2NCH CH,

0 cal-0H, =0 0H.NH:CiH40H EFT-C4119 Tricarbylic acid monobutylamide, dimethyl cyclohexylamine ethanolamine salt 1-10 Teaseed 011 99-90 Example 12 H H Tributylamine.HO(fi-C= CN(C4Ha)z 1-10 O (Tributyl amine salt of N-dlbutylmaleic amide.)

Diethylene glycol dipropionate 20 Blown teaseed oil 79-70 Example 13 v amin. H -0B 001m: m1- F atheism. (Laurylamine tetramethylammonium hydroxide salt of B-keto glutaricacid.) Soya bean nil 99 90 Example 14 Water s '70 Water soluble cellulose ester 15 NHLHO C-CHa. CH2. 0 Hz-(.|7-OH.Diethylene trlaminen" 5 (Glutaric acid ammonium diethylene triamine salt.)

Any of the above compositions may be applied to the yarn intendedfor use in circular knitting by means of a bath, wick, spray, roller, pad or any suitable means. The amount of conditioning liquid applied may vary between 5-25% by weight of the yarn. Usually, however, the amount of conditioning liquid applied is about 10-15% by weight of the yarn. Yarn composed of cellulose acetate conditioned as described above gives excellent results when used in the circular knitting process.

As will be apparent from the above examples and description the conditioning agents of my invention may be applied by a wide variety of methods. For example, I may employ the agent as an ingredient of the spinning dope from which the filaments are formed, the amount of the agent so employed depending upon a number of factors, such as the particular cellulose derivative used in making the yarn, the solvent or solvent combination used in making up the spinning solution, and the degree of softness or pliability desired in the yarn, etc.

If the conditioning agent is to be applied to the yarn after spinning, this may be done by bringing the yarn in contact with a wick, roll, .or felt wet therewith, or the liquid may be applied by immersion, spray, or otherwise. The particular point at which the liquid is applied may vary. It may, for example, be applied to the yarn inside or outside the spinning cabinet, between the guide and godet roll, between the godet or other roll or guide and the point of winding and/or twisting. In some cases, the liquid may even be applied to the yarn after winding onto cones, spools, bobbins, or the like or by the socalled bobbin to bobbin method. In the case of staple fiber manufacture, the liquid may be applied to the yarn into staple lengths.

The amount of the agent so employed will prior to, or after cutting I vary widely depending upon the results desired,

the specific nature of the material to which the agent is applied, the use to which the yarn is eventually to be put and other factors. For example, in a given case where a cellulose organic acidester yarn such as a yarn composed of cellulose acetate, is intended for knitting, about 4; to 25% weight of the dry yarn, may be satisfactory, while if the yarn is intended for weaving, the amount may vary between about 1 and 5%.

Although in the above examples I have referred the composition is or more by weight, based on the primarily to yarn treating compositions containlngonly the conditioning agent and an; oil, other ingredientssuch as solvents, non-solvents,

dyes or other coloring matter emulsifying agents, blending agents and the like,

trate my invention by reference to compositions containing specific percentages of the various ingredients, these percentages may vary widely depending upon the particular purpose'for which intended. For example, if it is desired to control the solvent or softening action of the conditioning agent, the amount of the agent may be adjusted as, for example, by reducing the amount of the agent and correspondingly increasing the amount of oil or other ingredient.

While I have described my invention with particular reference to the treatment of yarns composed of organic derivatives of cellulose such as cellulose acetate, the conditioning agents and formulas described herein are applicable to the conditioning of many other types of cellulose derivative yarns such as those composed of or containing cellulose propionate, cellulose butyrate, cellulose acetate propionate, cellulose acetate butyrate, ethyl cellulose, methyl cellu- -lose, benzyl cellulose and others, as well as to the conditioning of silk, wool, cotton, viscose, and other natural or artificial materials.

The term yarn as used herein and in the claims is to be understood as including a single filament, a plurality of filaments associated into the form of a thread, either of high or low twist,

single or multiple threads associated or twisted together, composite threads composed of a mixture of natural and artificial filaments or a com- The yarn conditioning method and composi-.

tions of my invention possess many outstanding advantages. The fundamental and outstanding characteristic of the agents employed in accordance with the invention is their ability to de-v electrify yarns, especially those composed of or containing organic derivatives of cellulose such: as cellulose acetate and render them soft and pli-- able and amenable to various textile operations, especially operations.such as those involved. in the manufacture of cut staple fibers and in weavare exceptionally good ing and knitting where complicated designs or stitches are employed, without too drastic an action on the yarn material. Another'outstanding characteristic of these compounds is their exceptional solvent power for a wide variety of mineral,

animal, and vegetable oils and their ability to act as lubricating assistants in conjunction with these oils when applied to such yarns. In addition, due to their solubility in water, they may be readily 76 removed from yarns and fabrics by means of the usual aqueous scour baths. 'By employing the yarn conditioning agents and method of my invention as herein described, one is enabled to obtain highly satisfactory results: in the manufacture of yarns and woven fabrics and especially the production from these yarns of closely knit fabrics free from defects such as pin holes, stitch distortion, laddering and the like.

What I claim is:

1. The process of conditioning yarn composed of or containing organic derivatives of cellulose to render it amenable to textile operations, including knitting, weaving, spinning, and the manufacture and use of staple fibers, which comprises applying to the yarn a lubricating and anti-static composition containing as its essential lubricating and anti-static component a salt selected from the group consisting of the inorganic and organic base salts of alkyl carboxylic acids and of carboxylic acids containing at least one carboxy amide group. i

2. The process of conditioning yarn composed of or containing cellulose acetate to render it amenable to textile operations, including knitting, weaving, spinning, and the manufacture and use of staple fibers, which comprises applying to the yarn a lubricating and anti static composition containing as its essential lubricating and anti-static component a salt selected from the group consisting of the inorganic and organic base salts of alkyl carboxylic acids and of carboxylic acids containing at least one carboxy amide group.

3. Textile yarns composed of or containing organic derivatives of cellulose, amenable to tex-- tile operations, including knitting, weaving, spinning and the manufacture of staple fibers, said yarns being impregnated with a lubricating and anti-static agent comprising a salt selected from the group of inorganic and organic base salts of JOSEPH B. DICKEY. 

